There On Welfare
by embersshadow1988
Summary: Hermione Granger's family is living at the poverty level,so learning and studies are not exactly her first priorities. What will happen to her at Hogwarts? I don't own HP.
1. Chapter 1

Premise: Hermione Granger's parents are living at the poverty level, due to the failure of their dentistry several years prior. As a result, Hermione must attend Hogwarts with only the bare minimum of supplies, paid for out of the fund for muggleborn's families who aren't willing or able to pay the fees. Thus, she isn't able to get anything beyond exactly what is on the list. The result – a not know-it-all Hermione Granger. How will this change things?

Third Person

Hermione Granger looked at the strange envelope that had come with the morning's mail. It was addressed to her, and had an interesting seal on the back. She headed to the living room where her parents were sipping on tea, and handed them their mail – mostly bills that they could barely afford. She sat down on a convenient ottoman and opened the letter.

The first page was blunt – she'd been accepted to some school... wait a minute. Hermione looked again at the name of the school. Witchcraft and Wizardry? Was this some kind of joke? It hardly mattered, she wouldn't be able to attend anyway. Not with her parents' income.

Hermione thought back to her early years. She'd had all the best – a high-end house, an expensive day-care, a tutor to make sure she was ahead of her peers, toys, books... everything a smart little girl could dream of.

But things were different now. They'd had to sell the big house for a small two-bedroom. Luckily (for her parents, anyway) she was now of school age and didn't need day care any more. Her mom only found a part-time job that she could hold, so she was always home when her little girl got home. Soon enough, though, Hermione had grown out of the books and toys she'd had, and craved more. Her parents had tried to explain it to her, but how do you explain to a six-year-old child that she couldn't get the latest toy or book that she'd been wanting?

Life had gone on, and she'd gotten bigger, and understood more about what was going on with her family. She no longer expected new toys at Christmas, or her birthday. Now she was lucky if her parents found something nice at the thrift store to give her, which is also where her clothes came from.

Her parents even got food stamps to help them pay for their groceries.

She shook her head. No need to think about those things now. Life had been this way for nearly half of her life, and as far as she could tell, wasn't likely to change. So she set the letter aside, and thought no more of it. But she could not help the slight twang of sadness that pierced her heart. She loved to learn, and she did well in school, but she craved more, but there was no one there to help guide her.

After all the bills had been looked through and some quiet murmuring from her parent's direction, the family got up and headed to the kitchen for a simple breakfast. Hermione never got to the part of the letter that said one of the professors from the school would be there the next day.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 – There On Welfare

Three days later, it was Saturday. Most kids looked forward to the weekend, but for Hermione it was just a chance to catch up on schoolwork and housework. It's not to say her parent's didn't do any work – heaven knows they did, but it seemed there was always more to be done. At 10 AM, a knock came on the door.

'Who could that be?' wondered Hermione. She really hoped it wasn't a bill collector. They did have some outstanding bills – that was to be expected – but she didn't think they were bad enough to warrant a visit from a collector at this point. She may have only just turned 11, but she noticed things. Things that her parents probably wouldn't have wanted her to realize.

Quickly she dried off her hands and made her way to the door, looking through the peep-hold. Well, whoever it was, they certainly didn't dress like a bill collector. It was an elderly woman, dressed in a manner more appropriate to about 50 years prior. Hermione shrugged and opened the door.

"Can I help you?" She asked, in her best polite voice. Her parents had taught her from early on that no matter what she looked like, manners were important.

"Hello, Miss Granger," greeted the woman at the door. "My name is Professor McGonagall. I sent you the letter you received a few days ago about Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." Oh. This was... unexpected. There must have been more to the letter than she'd read that was important.

It took her a minute to regroup herself, and her innate curiosity poked its' head up. "Do you mind waiting a minute while I go get my dad?"

"Of course not." Hermione left the door open, and went over to the living room, where her dad was vacuuming.

"Dad?" The vacuum turned off. "There's a lady here from that school I was invited to. Shall I invite her in?" Her dad shook his head. "Just explain that we can't afford it." His voice sounded weary and tired. So many opportunities his daughter could have had if only they could have afforded it.

Hermione bit her lip and nodded. "Yes Dad." She made her way back to the front door, taking longer than absolutely necessary, and looked up at Professor McGonagall. "I'm sorry ma'am, but I'm not going to be able to attend your school." Hermione opened her mouth again to explain why, but was interrupted.

Professor McGonagall held up her hand, and Hermione closed her mouth, and looked up, confused. "Your concern is financial difficulties, yes?"

Hermione blushed, but nodded. "Yes ma'am."

"You're not the first person to be accepted to our school who had financial difficulties. We have a fund for such students that allows them to come, as it is very important that you learn to control your magic," Professor McGonagall explained. It was her first time mentioning magic in front of the young girl, and she was curious about how she would respond.

"Oh, right," Hermione said, as she remember. The letter had mentioned that it was a school of 'witchcraft and wizardry'. As interesting as that sounded, what good would it do her in the real world?

"Dad, can you come here please?" The vacuum had stayed off, and Hermione had a good idea of what he'd been doing – spying – particularly because he'd seemed to appear from nowhere.

"Yes." He turned to the Professor. "Would you like to come in?"

"Certainly, thank you. I was just explaining how your daughter could attend our school," Professor McGonagall said as she crossed the threshold and followed them into the living room.

"Now, I don't know how much your daughter told you..."

"Nothing," her father replied.

"I didn't even read more than the first page, since I knew I wouldn't be able to come," Hermione admitted. "I wish I had now."

"Quite alright, Miss Granger," Professor McGonagall reassured her. "Let's go over it, shall we?"

Professor McGonagall pulled out a copy of the list of things Hermione would need for school and showed it to father and daughter.

Hermione's father whistled. "There's a lot on that list," he commented.

"Don't worry, Dr. Granger. The fund pays for all of it, not just tuition." At Hermione's perplexed look, she explained, " We have a lot of generous donors to this fund, mostly from families whose children have attended and gone on to high-paying jobs."

"Speaking of jobs," Hermione spoke up. "How will this help me get a job once I'm old enough to?"

This was a major concern of hers – as much as she loved her parents, she did not want to live her life in these conditions.

"Oh, Miss Granger," Professor McGonagall explained, "There are lots of jobs in the wizarding world, most if not all require an education, and in this country most children attend Hogwarts, the school to which you have been invited."

Hermione looked at the Professor. "So I wouldn't be able to hold a job in the nonmagical world if I went to Hogwarts?"

"Most don't," McGonagall bluntly stated. "But there are programs to help those who were raised in the muggle world to get the appropriate degree to be able to get a job in muggle world."

"Muggle?" "Nonmagical," Professor McGonagall explained.

Hermione thought for a few minutes, while her father and the Professor looked on. She didn't know what to think. Part of her was hesitant about the whole thing because she'd have to enter a whole new world that she would know nothing about. But to give up the one opportunity that she'd had in ages, she didn't think she could turn it down.

"I'd like to go," Hermione said softly, expressing an opinion for the first time. "But I need to talk to my mom once she gets home from work. They might need me here."

Professor McGonagall nodded. "I understand, Miss Granger. If you would let us know whether you would like to come – just address it to the school, or my name, it will get to the right place – within the next two weeks, I will be able to accompany you to get your school supplies.."

She stood and shook each person's hand. "I hope to see you again, Miss Granger."

"Thank you, ma'am," Hermione said.

The Granger family had a lot to talk about, and decide.


	3. Chapter 3

A bit later on at night, Mrs. Granger came home to find an anxious husband and a daughter who appeared to have been pacing the living room for quite some time, a letter in her hand.

"What's going on, dear?" she asked, looking to her husband.

"Our daughter has been invited to a special school," he held up a hand, seeing his wife about to interrupt. "There is a fund there for poor students that she qualifies for. From what I can tell," he looked over to Hermione, who was bouncing on her toes, "She wants to go, but wants to talk to us about it first." He led his daughter and wife to the living room where they sat down on the sparse furniture.

"So when did you first hear from this school, Hermione?" Mrs. Granger asked.

"Yesterday," said Hermione. "I didn't even look at the letter after seeing it was a school acceptance, since I knew we couldn't afford it. But a lady from the school, one of the teachers, I think, came by to explain that I could go despite our... financial difficulties. It looks interesting, mom. I'd really like to go."

"Well, I don't blame you, sweetheart," Mrs. Granger said kindly. "I'd get out of this situation too if I could."

Hermione blushed. "It's not like that, mom. It's just, you know how I am about learning – or used to be. Maybe I'd be able to get back into that if I was away at school. But," she sighed. "If you need me to stay here, I will. Family duties always come first." It was something she'd been taught growing up, and it wasn't about to be thrown away for the sake of a school invitation.

"You're right," Mr. Granger said. "Family duties... in most situation... do come first. But sometimes it's better to look to the future. If you have a good education at this place, you'd have a better chance of getting a good job and getting out of this type of situation. You know we never wanted this for you."

Hermione got up and hugged her dad. "I know, Daddy. I know."

The room was silent for a few moments. Mrs. Granger was thinking about what her husband and daughter had said, Mr. Granger was thinking about how this could be a wonderful opportunity for his daughter, and Hermione was just trying to figure out what her parents were thinking, and whether or not they would let her go. She wanted to – she really, really did. But she didn't want to let that show, not until they'd made their decision. She didn't want to show her disappointment if they decided against it either. So she kept her face as neutral as possible. Finally, her mom spoke up.

"Your father does have a point, Hermione. I don't want you growing up in this situation for the rest of your life if you can help it. And it sounds like you can." She took a deep breath and let it go, understanding that her next statement would mean losing her daughter for most of the year. "I think you should go."

"I agree," said Mr. Granger. He looked over to Hermione. "That's that then. Why don't you go write that letter to the nice lady that visited us earlier?"

Hermione grinned, allowing herself to show how happy she was at the turn of events. 

"Okay, dad."

_Professor McGonagall, _

_We have decided as a family that it would be a good idea for me to attend Hogwarts. _

_I appreciate your visit yesterday and look forward to seeing you again. _

_Hermione Granger _


End file.
